Bayo Onanuga, Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, in a statement also said the Presidential Candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the 2023 election was not qualified to contest in the first place, having failed to honour the zoning arrangements of his party.
The Presidency while responding to Atiku’s statement that his mandate was stolen, also added that “Tinubu rightfully won the presidency, a position Atiku was simply unqualified for due to his arrogance, insensitivity to Nigeria’s diversity, and the decision to disregard his party’s power rotation arrangement between the North and the South after eight years of President Muhammadu Buhari.”
Onanuga said, “Since his defeat in the last election, former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has shown more interest in undermining President Bola Ahmed Tinubu than in addressing his party’s implosion. We suspect he is envious of Tinubu’s position—an office he has unsuccessfully sought six times.
“It is perplexing that he would elevate his untested, hypothetical proposal, which Nigerians soundly rejected during the 2023 Presidential Election, and seek to present it as a superior alternative to the multi-faceted reform programmes implemented by the Tinubu administration.
“If his plan lacked popular appeal, he must acknowledge that merely repackaging it will not resolve the social and economic challenges his People’s Democratic Party (PDP) bequeathed after 16 years in power.
“Atiku’s economic analysis demonstrates a significant misunderstanding of Nigeria’s realities. His narrative, “What We Would Have Done Differently,” indicates an inability to engage with the pressing economic realities being revitalised multidimensionally under President Tinubu’s leadership.
“What reforms would Atiku propose at the onset of his hypothetical and fabled presidency? While he suggests a consultation period upon assuming office, the reality is that the Nigerian economy requires immediate and decisive action. A leader must be prepared to tackle challenges from Day One, as President Tinubu has done.
“Atiku’s idea of a consultation period upon entering office shows a troubling lack of awareness regarding the state of the economy, which was in dire need of urgent action. The Tinubu administration came prepared with a firm action plan to address the shortcomings that persisted during President Olusegun Obasanjo’s time when Atiku was vice president.”
On fuel subsidy, he said, “The estimated N5.4 trillion savings from subsidy removal in 2024 are being actively directed toward infrastructure development and social intervention programmes, initiatives that will benefit all tiers of government and enhance Nigerians’ quality of life.
“We expect Atiku to commend what the Tinubu administration has done concerning revenue generation for the Federation. Without factoring in oil sales, revenue proceeds generated by the Federal Inland Revenue Service almost doubled in the first half of 2024, compared with the level Tinubu met in 2023. The states and councils are more prosperous because of it, as many states have increased the minimum wage for their workers to between N70,000 and N85,000.
“Atiku’s proposal to privatise the four government-owned refineries, which collectively can only meet a fraction of the nation’s daily fuel consumption when activated, lacks originality.
“In 2007, investors were only willing to offer $160 million for 51% equity in the Port Harcourt Refinery, while the Kaduna Refinery had an offer of $102 million. According to industry experts and the late President Umar Musa Yar’Adua, Nigeria’s Head of State at the time, who cancelled the sale of the refineries by the Obasanjo-Atiku government, the offered bids were considered scrap value.
“As vice president, Atiku oversaw the sale of the nation’s assets to private individuals and cronies at low prices. Today, most public enterprises Atiku sold have been stripped and become dead assets.
“The model of farming the completely rehabilitated refineries to private sector managers at an agreed-upon rate of return to the government, as adopted by Tinubu’s government, is more practical and value-laden than selling our national patrimony to some private interests that are not technically capable of operating the refineries.”
